


Dingle Code

by ily_cdvw



Category: Emmerdale
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-04
Updated: 2019-04-04
Packaged: 2020-01-04 20:05:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18350780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ily_cdvw/pseuds/ily_cdvw
Summary: Just a little conversation I feel that Charity and Vanessa need to have after the last few weeks/months





	Dingle Code

“Was he alright?” Charity whispered as he fiancée climbed back into bed.

“Yeah, yeah – he just needed me to tell him about twenty times that none of the dinosaurs from the book will be able to get into his bedroom,” Vanessa half laughed as she spoke, pulling the duvet up towards her chin, the cool April air making itself known.

“Kids ey?” Charity sighed wrapping an arm around Vanessa’s middle, pulling her ever so slightly closer to her, craving the warmth her body provided.

“Speaking of kids,” Vanessa shuffled closer to Charity, the roles in reverse to normal with Charity acting as the big spoon, “I saw Debbie and Cain earlier, they both looked really upset. What’s going on with them?”

Charity shuffled slightly uncomfortably in the bed but never once broke the contact her and Vanessa had. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust her fiancée, it wasn’t that at all, she just didn’t want to burden her with anymore Dingle drama. Especially not when it came to life and death. Well, only life now.

“You know what those pair are like, always at each other’s throats for something,” Charity said after a few silent moments hoping her comment was enough to stop Vanessa asking questions. Much to Charity’s dismay the woman tucked in beside her turned herself around so the two were facing one another.

“It’s more than that, I know it is,” Vanessa said, and the taller blonde suddenly had a wave of guilt pass over her as she looked into the blue eyes that conveyed nothing but concern and care.

“Babe, honestly it’s nothing to worry about that’s why I haven’t mentioned it to you…they’ll work it out they both just need time.”

“You said that about Lisa,” Vanessa said and instantly regretted it as she felt Charity tense and her arm removed itself from around her waist.

“This isn’t like that,” Charity snapped, more aggressively than she had planned.

“Well maybe not but it’s another one of these Dingle secrets that seems to be floating about,” Vanessa said. She’d not had the conversation about it with Charity before, she’d always been too scared to start an argument with her but the whole Dingle code made her slightly uncomfortable. Since her and Charity had been together she’d seen it take its toll on the woman she loved on more than one occasion. The trial was the worst, Dingle court had kept her infuriated for weeks and now Lisa and Zak asking her to keep such a massive and emotionally draining secret from the rest of the family.

“Honestly babe it’s nothing, I’m sure you’ll argue with Johnny when he’s Debbie’s age.”

“I hope he never tries to move to a new country or goes on holiday for weeks on end to get away from me. Charity, that’s not normal.”

“I did tell you before, if you wanted normal then-“

“Charity stop trying to make a joke about this,” Vanessa sighed moving backwards slightly so there was now more room between her and Charity.

“Look, I’m tired, can we just talk about whatever this is tomorrow?” with this comment Charity rolled over so she was no longer looking at Vanessa and the couple lay in a silence that was not comfortable like it usually was.

“It’s not about Cain and Debbie…not really,” Vanessa whispered after a few moments of silence. When she received no reply from the blonde laying next to her she carried on, “it’s just this whole Dingle thing, the whole keeping secrets and-“

“Cain killed Joe,” Charity suddenly said, “happy now? Is that what you wanted to hear?”

“Charity I had no idea it was that serious,” Vanessa said in a quiet voice as she ran her hand up and down Charity’s arm, coaxing her to roll over so they were facing once more.

“He didn’t kill Joe,” Charity sighed as Vanessa gave her a puzzled look. “Cain punched Joe the day of the charity ball and he was unconscious, Graham said he’d move the body and sort it so no one would find out. He told Debbie who then told me and Faith and, babe, I just couldn’t tell you, it was too much. You didn’t need to be burdened with anything else.”

“Hang on, he didn’t kill him? Where is Joe then?”

“I’m not sure, I only found out today. Apparently he rang the police or something and said he was still alive. Cain thought Debbie would forgive him straight away, but she’s still just so broken by it all..” Charity trailed off as Vanessa slid an arm around her waist, pulling their two bodies closer together.

“Charity,” Vanessa whispered in the same voice she used to settle the boys back to sleep. Vanessa’s mind was racing, “so not only are you covering up Lisa’s illness, you’ve also been hiding the fact that Cain’s a murderer-“

“Thought he was a murderer,” Charity quickly corrected.

“Charity that’s not the point!” Vanessa’s voice raised slightly, and she winced waiting for a cry to come from the next room. Luckily, no cries were heard. Her arm came away from her fiancée’s waist and she moved backwards slightly.

Charity knew this conversation was coming, she was expecting it after the Dingle court and then after the argument they had before Vanessa got stabbed and then after Vanessa’s birthday. Charity hadn’t expected the conversation to be now. She was aware that she burdened Vanessa with so much in their short time together and she knew that bother her and her family were difficult. The past few weeks, months even, had been different…Charity could sense Vanessa getting irate when there was whispering behind closed doors or when Charity just told her not to worry with a kiss on the cheek.

“Tell me what the point is Ness,” Charity whispered, edging closer to her fiancée again.

“I just…it’s excluding this whole Dingle code stuff and I’m not sure I always agree with it. I feel like I’m just always supposed to put up with things, with whoever’s shouting or complaining and make the dinner and sort the boys. I knew it was never going to be your typical conventional family, I just didn’t quite expect this,” Vanessa looked down at the covers as she finished speaking, playing with a loose thread that wasn’t there, afraid slightly of Charity’s reaction.

“I’m sorry,” Charity said, and it was genuine, perhaps the most genuine apology Vanessa had ever heard from her. “I could sense something was wrong and I didn’t check up on you and I just let you do all the boring everyday stuff whilst I’m so wrapped up in myself. I’m so sorry Ness,” the words were soft and sincere, and Vanessa wrapped herself around Charity’s body, begging for the tears not to fall.

“It’s okay, I’m sorry for telling yo-“

“No. Ness, you have to talk to me, you need to tell me these things. It’s the only way this,” Charity squeezed Vanessa a little tighter, “is going to work and I want this to work for a very long time.”

“But you’ve got so much going on, even more than I thought, you don’t need me adding to it.”

“I love you, it’s my job to make your burden a little bit lighter,” Vanessa smiled at Charity’s comment. There was a slight pause, a silence much more comfortable than earlier before Charity asked, “is this why you stole the car?”

“I wanted to protect you, that was all,” Vanessa said quietly.

“You sure?”

“I’m sure, you hit a man with a pole when you wanted to protect me,” Vanessa laughed slightly and then sighed, “maybe I just wanted to prove myself a little bit, just prove that I can fit in with the Dingle way or whatever it’s called.”

Charity lifted Vanessa’s chin so that the couple were looking at one another, “you don’t need to prove anything to me, you are part of this family, you and Johnny, because I want you to be, because all of them want you to be. You don’t need to steal cars or punch people so hard that you think you’ve killed them to be a part of this family Ness. Anyway, not sure why you’re so focused on wanting to fit in with my family when we’ve done a pretty good job of creating a little family all of our own.”

 

 

 


End file.
